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Fourth Year: Achieve
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The College Specialist Team Career Counselors are available to guide and support you through the following:
Revisit the Career Planning Guide and evaluate your progress
- Read through the checklist for your current year and highlight areas you want to accomplish during the year.
- Write down two questions to discuss with a Career Counselor.
- Consider attending a Career Services workshop or event on a related topic such as Four-Year career plan or Career Portfolio.
Refine and demonstrate your unique and authentic professional brand
- Prepare to articulate to others what you can uniquely contribute.
- Utilize social media to support and promote your professional brand.
- Evaluate your professional attire and update as needed to ensure that it aligns with your industry and desired image
- Participate in a mock interview with a Career Counselor.
- Practice communicating your brand succinctly in an elevator pitch.
- Enhance your brand through your professional business cards, voicemail greeting, and email signature.
- Visit your College Specialist Career Counselor to ensure your resume and cover letter promote your professional brand.
- Consider attending a Career Services workshop or event such as Professional Brand Workshop or workshops/events on the topic of interviewing.
Update and refine your career portfolio
- Include examples of how you have used your top 5 strengths from StrengthsQuest.
- Continue adding relevant coursework and labs, projects, extra-curriculars, and internships/part-time work.
- Include visuals such as photos, documents, designs, etc.
- Add the Portfolium link to your email signature, resume, and LinkedIn profile.
- Attend a Career Services workshop about Portfolium.
- Showcase your portfolio to prospective employers; bring a tablet to interviews, networking sessions, and job fairs.
- Follow companies of interest to increase your visibility to hiring managers.
Complete the necessary steps in the graduate/professional school application process
- Review the Graduate School links on the Career Services website.
- Understand the application process and important deadlines for your intended program(s).
- Network with potential faculty, current students, and alumni in your intended program(s).
- Take advantage of Career Services and departmental resources such as the Writing & Rhetoric Center and Pre-Health Career Advising for feedback on application materials, interview preparation.
- Consider attending a Career Services workshop or event on a related topic such as Personal Statement Workshop and Test Prep/Practice Sessions.
Update and utilize MustangJOBS
- Update your resume to reflect your most recent accomplishments. Upload your resume to MustangJOBS.
- Search for jobs and internships in your field of interest.
- If you haven’t identified a field of interest, begin by searching for positions that match your qualifications. Meet with your career counselor to discuss possibilities.
- Sign up for networking sessions that feature companies that interest you.
- Review Career Fair participating employers to narrow down who you want to connect with. Further research those employers.
- Create a “saved search” then activate automated emails to receive job postings on a recurring basis.
- Consider attending a Career Services workshop or event on a related topic such as “Get a Job” or “Internship Search Strategy.”
Make the most of Career Services’ resources and services, including the College Specialist Team
- Meet with your College Specialist Career Counselor in Fall Quarter for help strategizing your job search or professional/graduate school application process.
- Access Career Services’ 24/7 online resources, such as Big Interview and GoingGlobal.
- Consider attending a Career Services workshop or event on a related topic such as “21st Century Workplace Skills” workshop or a career fair.
Cultivate, expand, and leverage your network
- Connect with faculty/staff, alumni, industry professionals, and employers by engaging in informational interviews or job shadowing.
- Refine and practice your elevator pitch or sound bites about your education, experience, involvement, strengths and goals at networking events or career fairs.
- Update your LinkedIn profile and continue connecting with peers and professionals in your industry. Attend a LinkedIn workshop to discover strategies for connecting with alumni in your field.
- Update your networking action plan to continue tracking your professional relationships.
- Join a professional organization related to your field of interest. Keep in mind that membership fees for students are typically lower than for professionals.
- Consider attending a Career Services workshop or event on a related topic such as Networking Workshop or related event.
Pursue a meaningful career path which allows you to apply your strengths, values, interests, and personality
- Choose a senior project that aligns with your professional goals.
- Research organizations of interest to learn about their mission, vision, values, and company culture.
- Practice articulating your strengths, skills, and experience in a mock interview with your College Specialist Career Counselor.
- Create a resume and cover letter that highlights your skills, strengths, and personality.
- Connect with faculty and staff for post-college guidance and advice; and maintain your relationships after graduation.
- Determine your career non-negotiable preferences, such as geographic location, work environment, and work/life balance.
- Consider attending a Career Services workshop or event on a related topic such as International Careers or Salary Negotiating/Budgeting.
Strategize and launch your job search
- Stay organized by using the Job Search Tracking Spreadsheet available on Career Services’ handouts webpage, or develop your own system for tracking your job search.
- Set deadlines for completing important tasks in your job search, such as sending out resumes, following up with employers, and sending thank you notes.
- Meet with your College Specialist Career Counselor early this year to identify and remove roadblocks in your job search.
- Consider attending a Career Services workshop or event on a related topic such as “Get a Job” or “Making the Most of the Career Fair.”
Make time for and appreciate the value of reflection
- Consider attending a Career Services workshop or event on a related topic such as “Planned Happenstance” or a Strengths workshop.
- Use the following questions to help you reflect on how your experiences this year can relate to your future career plans.
- Have you clarified your career preferences, such as industry, job function, geographic location, compensation, company culture, and work/life balance?
- How comfortable do you feel with your job search or graduate school plans? Consider how you could increase your confidence with this process.
- What stories can you share in interviews that showcase your top strengths and skills?
- How are you managing your stress level and taking care of yourself as you define your post-college plans?
Complete the Graduate Status Survey
- Complete the Graduate Status Survey
- Anonymously share your career or graduate/professional school plans. Your responses will be compiled with other graduates’ responses into the annual Graduate Status Report.